Selling has changed: 8 simple steps to leading a modern sales team

The world has changed, and buyers have changed with it. Decades ago, sellers engaged buyers with solutions that were simple. However, in today's complex world, buyers are leveraging ever-present data to inform their decisions.

In fact, the growing complexity of our world has precipitated significant average IQ gains across decades of research. This phenomenon leaves sellers with a new challenge: how does one engage today’s sophisticated buyer?

The answer? Remove the “one” and replace it with “many.”

This answer originates from the responses of 5,000 respondents to a Harvard Business Review study, which revealed that an average of 5.4 people is involved in every purchasing decision. So if you are going to pitch to a team, you need to present as a team. However, sellers, while skilled in positioning solutions to buyers, often work alone.

A new framework is needed to equip sellers with the tools for building a well-organised team. Read on for eight key steps on how to assemble a cohesive team to win the sale in high-stakes meetings:

1. Refining the group’s mission

The goal is to land the sale. However, refining the group’s mission goes further - getting a clear understanding of how you plan to reach that goal.

All the members of the team should be able to state the mission succinctly, proving that everyone is on the same page. What’s more, as an effective leader, your job is to define what winning means for the business and the team members.

2. Set performance goals

Performance goals work like a chain reaction. Leaders need to set not just the final goal of winning the sale, but all of the incremental goals leading up to that point.

High-stakes meetings that require a team are often for larger pieces of business. Therefore, it's critical to create performance goals that build momentum - such as moving a customer from a neutral position to one where they express positive feedback.

3. Identify challenges

The first chapter of Lao Tzu’s classic book The Art of War is titled “Laying Plans.” In this chapter, he outlines the questions a military leader must ask to understand the challenges ahead in an effort “to forecast victory or defeat.”

Creating the conditions for a well-organised selling team are similar to this idea. A team leader must be honest and realistic about the challenges leading up to a sales meeting. This strategy gives the team time to prepare. Face the difficulties in selling now, and address them while there's time.

4. Clarify individual and collective work product

Individual tasks add up to the collective work product. Take full advantage of the power of a team by dividing the prep work for the sales meeting into manageable parts.

Simultaneously, some tasks — like drafting the pitch book or setting the agenda — are best tackled by the group. This work towards a finalised plan fosters cohesion and communication that benefits the final presentation.

5. Define accountabilities

Every member of the team has a role to fulfill. Effective team leaders ensure that each player on the team is clear on what is expected of them. The more specific the expectations, the better suited the team members will be to carry out their tasks.

This approach taps into what psychologists call “locus of control”, or the extent to which the team members believe they control the outcome of the project.

Help each teammate understand how their work contributes to the whole.

6. Plan for conflict

Conflict is healthy, and in this case, it's necessary. Sellers are accustomed to working alone and on their terms. Therefore, teams don’t always coalesce naturally. Moreover, the stress of high-stakes meetings will create contentions as differing perspectives emerge.

Avoid the natural inclination to seek consensus. Rather, face these disagreements, and give the decision rights to those with the greatest skill and experience.

7. Create communication ground rules

Early on in the process, determine how the team will communicate, at what frequency, and for how long.

It will be important to strike a balance that achieves enough communication without simply having more meetings for the sake of more talking. Sellers are often geographically diverse, and therefore, meetings might need to become virtual.

8. Create an objective feedback loop

Often we become blind to our flaws. Feedback is both painful and the best way to improve. Engage in continuous improvement by seeking feedback from team members. The time to reveal these areas of improvement is early, when they can be adjusted.

The need for a more cohesive group in selling is more evident than ever.

“It’s a fact of life. If you’re a salesperson who wants to close deals and drive results, you’re going to have to sell with others,” commented Michael Dalis, author of Sell Like a Team.